BioWare has released some brand new information on Mass Effect 4 during a special panel at the San Diego Comic-Con.

The BioWare team showed off some concept art for the game, but stated that all of the content seen is subject to change and may not even appear in the final game.

Game Producer Mike Gamble stated that the Mass Effect 4 release date is still “years away”, pretty much reiterating what the other developers have been saying for the past year or so about the game’s developmental phase.

However, the team did confirm that the game will be next-gen consoles only, so only for Xbox One, PS4 and potentially PC, rather than last gen consoles as well.

What’s interesting is that BioWare has now confirmed the main character will be human, but isn’t ready to comment on other playable races as yet.

The team did reiterate that the game will not be anything to do with Shepard and will feature the a brand new story, but the new Mass Effect timeline will be set during Shepard’s lifetime, albeit potentially in a different galaxy.

Two customisable armour designs for the game’s protagonist, in both male and female forms, were shown off during the presentation, including N7 detailing from the previous Mass Effect titles.

In that manner, you could see some of your old favourite characters return as in-game cameos, although you might not see Shepard making any kind of comeback.

The Mako, a six-wheeled vehicle used in the first Mass Effect game, will be making a re-appearance in Mass Effect 4 (although this is definitely not what the next game will be called).

This is due to the fact the next Mass Effect will have a strong focus on exploration, although the Mako will be revamped and made a lot speedier.

“We’re playing around with a bunch of different physics for the Mako. The thing that we have to do is make sure it is as responsive as possible,” said Gamble. “We’ve learned a thing or two over the years.”

The new Mako will also be customisable, as BioWare believes “if you’re going to be spending a lot of time in vehicles in places, they should reflect you as a player”.